SpaceX launched a Falcon 9 rocket Saturday night from Vandenberg Space Force Base near Lompoc, Calif., It put 24 satellites into near Earth orbit in polar areas.

The launch takes place on a milestone date, marking 20 years since the STS-114 space shuttle mission took off from Kennedy Space Center Pad 39B. The launch of Discovery on the STS-114 mission on July 26, 2005, marked the return to flight for the space shuttle after the Columbia tragedy investigation.

One of these ride-along NASA efforts is the Athena EPIC (Economical Payload Integration Cost) SmallSat, which will demonstrate a new way of more efficiently placing remote-sensing (or rather, Earth-observing) instruments into orbit.

The NASA TRACERS mission is set to launch on Wednesday atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket after SpaceX postponed Tuesday's launch due to "airspace concerns."

Late-night rocket launch window! Weather permitting and depending on cloud cover, SpaceX Falcon 9 could be visible in the Volusia County sky this week

SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch from Vandenberg in California on a NASA mission. Where are some spots to watch liftoff? Will there be a sonic boom?